Tag Archives: #announcement

Additive manufacturing can be a tricky, complicated process. But complexity has its advantages. With the right adaptations, you can take existing 3D printing infrastructure and make it more. Even with printers that were not specifically designed to be adapted.

Great 3D printing can get even tougher when you start to have higher standards for your prints. Especially if you expect precision and detail, not only in shading and coloring but in texture. Few 3D printers really excel at everything, and being able to patch over small little weaknesses can be stunningly useful.

Mosaic Palette 2 Pro

The Mosaic Palette 2 Pro makes that process more accessible. Its design is somewhat ingenious. Instead of requiring your 3D printer do extra work, the Palette 2 gets your print filaments to do more. And the Palette is a totally self-contained system, which is what allows it work with a wide number of 3D printers.

Once it’s up and going, the Palette 2 Pro can help layer your prints with colorful ABS, PETG, or PLA. It uses a filament run-out detection feature, ensuring at least one of the four onboard sensors are always keeping your printer in operation. That also helps the Palette 2 can combine several spools with ease. But clearly, there are still many questions left unanswered.

Build & Design

The Mosaic Palette 2 Pro is slightly on the heavier side, weighing 7.9lbs. Its supported feedstock size fits a 1.75mm FFF filament, quite standard for these types of products, which are intended to blur the lines between consumer grade equipment and professional equipment. And physically, its dimensions measure 9 x 8 x 3.3-inches, making it a fairly compact addition to any workspace.

Inside the solid state splicer, Splice Core Pro 1.0 technology works together with a 32-Bit ARM processor. Together, they direct six Nema 17-Stepper motors to add some grizzly firepower to your 3D printer’s physical capabilities. But what truly distinguishes the Palette 2 Pro from the Palette 2 is the inclusion of Splice Core Pro.

Without going into excruciating detail on the mechanical differences involved, it’s safe to say they are quite significant. Each splicer is machined from aluminum, to help provide better cooling speeds and faster splices.

The inclusion of the Splice Core Pro module actually helps make the Palette 2 roughly 20% faster. It might not sound like a massive difference, but when you’re working on a larger project, that sort of speed difference can be night and day.

Printing in Action

The Mosaic Palette 2 Pro does not require any calibration, which makes setup pretty simple. Automatic calibration occurs on your first print, and calibration is designed to only improve with use. And the Palette 2 Pro includes a stand and mounting plate, but it can also be laid flat on a table if you don’t want to bother with an elaborate setup.

The Palette 2 Pro uses a buffer system to help feed its filaments into a print job. The Palette 2 Pro doesn’t push filaments into your print job. It merely offers the filament for use, and allow the printer to pull it away, similar to a spool of yarn.

The Mosaic Palette 2 Pro is capable of accepting four filaments at once. To get started, you simply place the spools of filament on the filament stand. And there’s no need to worry about rigging your own stand because an adequate stand is included with the Palette 2 Pro. Once you’ve got your filaments in position, you feed them into the Palette 2’s input drive. That’s basically as simple as plugging in a cable.

From here, you can essentially sit back and watch the magic happen. Depending on the kind of work you’re doing, you may monitor your progress or the consumption of filaments, as the Mosaic Palette 2 continues to make-and-use those observations in real time. It’s now when the Palette 2 Pro will cut, cool, heat, and splice your filaments into a single strand composed of the once separate segments.

Whether you’re trying to create advanced prints or simple ones, this type of design is clearly ideal for printing with multiple materials. You may find especially good results by mixing PLA and ABS, and it’s fair to say you’re really only limited by your imagination, patience, and budget.

User Interface

Most of the time, the Palette 2 Pro does not require a babysitter. You can generally give it a task, and then let it get to work with confidence the task will get done. But for those internment moments where you’re setting up and configuring your next print, the 3.2” full-color touchscreen is rather simple to use.

Being composed of 240 x 320 pixels, the screen isn’t great, especially for someone who’s used to staring at smartphone screens. But you’re not going to be looking at high definition photos on this display, and it provides all the clarity that’s necessary for operation.

Much of that clarity is due to extensive use of color labeling. With such great support for color, you might expect a beautiful user interface. But the user interface is not aesthetically remarkable at all. However, it’s terribly easy to use. You probably won’t be confused by what function the stop-sign button serves.

The Mosaic Palette 2 Pro provides several print modes, which you can access from the touchscreen. The most prominent among them include Pattern Mode, Gradient Mode, and Random Mode. Whether you’re trying to create specific patterns or you’re simply trying to add texture, these modes allow you to churn out some pretty stylish skins with only a few taps.

Using the Palette 2 Pro

On the software side of things, ease of use is equally steady. That’s largely because of the inclusion of support for the CANVAS platform. It provides a highly direct, highly usable interface, allowing you to upload your favorite splicer profiles and streamline the process of printing 3D content with multiple materials.

Within the software, you can use layer batching, infill transition, apply color to 3D models, and similar time-saving features. That includes rather extensive support for textures and even some strong free form tools. Using them, you can save and track your prints and then share your designs online. While this type of software isn’t exactly a full-fledged replacement for a 3D modeling suite, it does extend what the Palette 2 Pro can offer.

In addition to the Wi-Fi connections through Canvas Hub, it’s possible to upload your print data using a USB connection or an SD card. The USB connections are high-bandwidth ports, and you won’t struggle to fit almost any type of SD card inside the Mosaic Palette 2 Pro. Though if you start using the especially small ones, you may need to break out an adapter.

Maintenance

The reason why the Palette 2 can work with so many direct-drive printers and 3D printers is because it doesn’t require some kind of elaborate installation. It’s universal enough to be incorporated into the majority of all non-industrial 3D printer setups. And that simplicity carries over into several other aspects of design, including maintenance.

Mosaic designed the Palette 2 Pro with the intent of maintenance being a tool-free process. As a result, it’s possible to access all the parts which may require maintenance with minimal effort. You’ll just have to go through a magnetic top-casing and some thumbscrews. If something needs to be replaced, you’ll need to swap out parts in a process that’s about as complicated as moving two Lego bricks together.

Other Considerations

In addition to the software already mentioned, Mosaic Chroma is also included. It extends control over the Palette 2 Pro to include offline support. With respect to its functionality, it’s functionally adjacent to CANVAS 3D printing software. Combined, you can use them ensure the Palette 2 Pro is always under your control, even if you want to setup a secure home network.

The Mosaic Palette 2 Pro is picky. While some 3D printers are capable of operating in slightly chilly temperatures, the Palette 2 Pro needs an ambient operating temperature between 60-86°F.

In addition to its mounting equipment, the Palette 2 Pro includes a USB cable which can be used to help update the device, a handful of spare parts, and a power adapter. The included power adapter inputs are supported by the USA, UK, AU, and EU. The spares are for the components most likely in need of replacement within the next few years, which allows you to remain self-sustained for quite some time.

Who Should Choose the Mosaic Palette 2 Pro?

3D printing can be complicated, especially if you want real depth in the level of specialization you can achieve. The Mosaic Palette 2 Pro does its best to keep things simple. Having this kind of feeding system provides quite a bit of raw mechanical power for your 3D printer to work with. It can be used to help you work on almost anything you might be printing, from phone cases to rubber watchbands.

That’s because it’s unquestionable that the Mosaic Palette 2 Pro is great for making detailed, color-rich 3D textures and skins. The features that make it all possible are approachable to amateurs but have the depth of customization necessary for professionals. That kind of duality is really what makes the Mosaic Palette 2 Pro such a powerful tool, for both power-users and pros.

Because the Palette 2 is compatible with the CANBAS Hub, your connectivity options are essentially limitless as well. The range of connectivity options isn’t going to disappoint anyone, though support for Bluetooth could have sweetened the deal.

Amazon’s $29.99 Echo Wall Clock is now here to complete the set of minimalist Alexa devices (including a smart microwave and outlet plug) that the company announced earlier this year. Like some of those other products, the analog Wall Clock doesn’t actually have a mic for Alexa built in; it’s meant for those who already own an Echo. If you do, you can have it display timers, alarms, and reminders through voice commands.

The Echo Wall Clock runs on 4 AA batteries and needs to be synced to an Echo device through a quick setup process that requires Bluetooth and a Wi-Fi connection. But you can do it all through voice without having to pull out your phone. It has 60 LEDs running around the clock’s face, so you can look at multiple timers and alarms at once, which honestly sounds stressful to me. The Wall Clock features a white bezel — there’s no black model — and has a 10-inch diameter. Amazon says it automatically adjusts for daylight saving time. Everything you need for mounting comes included in the box.

Some examples Amazon envisions for how you might use the clock include setting a pasta or steak timer while cooking, limiting a child’s screen time, setting a high-intensity interval workout timer, a reminder to leave for work on time, or giving yourself a timer for meditation. Timers and meditation just don’t seem to jive, but the others sound reasonable enough, especially when most digital clocks on your phone or computer won’t have such a large interface to watch the time tick down.

PARIS: Hackers have stolen data from a French foreign ministry website created for citizens traveling abroad, the ministry said on Thursday (Dec 13).

The breach raises questions about the security of French government websites, though the ministry sought to reassure users that the stolen information was not highly sensitive and that Ariane site was safe to use.

“Personal data registered during registration on the Ariane platform has been stolen,” it said in a statement. “This data could be misused but with limited effect as the information does not include sensitive financial material or data likely to disclose destinations.

“We immediately took the necessary measures to ensure this type of incident would not happen again,” it said, adding that the site was now safe to use.

The Ariane site, which tells travelers to “stay connected for your security”, was set up in 2010 to enable French citizens to receive security-related updates while abroad. It was not immediately clear where the hackers originated from.

Qualcomm is trying to get the latest iPhones banned from China after a win in court earlier this week delivered a preliminary ban on Apple’s older phones. According to the Financial Times, Qualcomm has now asked Chinese courts to issue an injunction that bans Apple from selling the iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR within the country due to the same case of possible patent infringement.

The new filing will escalate the companies’ legal conflict in China, where Apple has so far ignored a court-ordered sales ban. Apple claims the ban only applied to phones running iOS 11 and earlier. Since its phones have now been updated to iOS 12, Apple believes they can remain on sale, and so it has continued to sell them.

APPLE CLAIMS THE BAN DOESN’T APPLY TO IOS 12

According to the Financial Times, the Chinese court’s order doesn’t specifically mention any version of Apple’s operating system. That doesn’t necessarily mean Apple is wrong, but it does mean that there’s more to be hashed out. Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Qualcomm was able to win an initial ban on the iPhone 6S, 6S Plus, 7, 7 Plus, 8, 8 Plus, and X by indicating to a court that it was likely to win a patent infringement case. Apple seems to be arguing that even if Qualcomm does win, those patents wouldn’t be infringed by its newest operating system, which means the sales ban isn’t being violated.

The Financial Times says this added pressure from Qualcomm is really meant to nudge Apple toward settlement talks. The two companies are in an extended legal battle across the globe, and Qualcomm has largely appeared to be on the losing side. Not only is Apple after it, but many governments have gone after Qualcomm for alleged anti-competitive behavior, similar to what Apple is suing over. In several countries, Qualcomm has already lost.

It was later found under a lamppost along Marina South Pier by a 46-year-old man known as Mr Ting.

They are back again for another round this year.

This time, a whopping $100,000 cash is hidden away and waiting to be found somewhere in Singapore!!

Same Same, but Different

There are a few slight differences to the original Hunt The Mouse that was introduced a year ago.

Besides the 3 hints given out daily and the mysterious letter…

In case you can’t see the image above:

More often than not,you give me a shock.I know how hard you fought,to become an astronaut,so while deep in thought,don’t forget the moon shot.As I slumber in my spot,I must not, must not,be caught with an apricot.

The Most Expensive OnePlus Phone Ever

Not content to end the year with just three different 6T options, OnePlus has announced a new special edition of the phone co-branded with storied automotive racing company McLaren. The OnePlus 6T McLaren edition is much like the 6T that was released earlier this fall, but it comes with more RAM, an even faster wired charging system, and a special black-and-orange color scheme. The phone will be available starting on December 13th in North America and Western Europe for $699 / €699. It will arrive in China, India, and the Nordics at a later date.

Nearly $700 is a steep price for a OnePlus phone, which are typically priced very aggressively compared to other high-end Android phones. The standard OnePlus 6T starts at $549 for 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. To justify its price tag, the McLaren edition has 10GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, and OnePlus’ new Warp Charge 30 wired charging. It ships in orange McLaren-branded packaging along with a special orange and black USB-C cable and headphone dongle, a McLaren-branded case, a piece of actual carbon fiber encased in an acrylic block, and a hardcover book highlighting the history of McLaren’s racing efforts.

On the outside, the McLaren 6T has a fluorescent orange highlight along the bottom edge of the phone’s frame, and a glossy black finish with a carbon fiber pattern weave under the back glass. Otherwise, it has the same design as the standard 6T, including the edge-to-edge display with small teardrop notch and dual rear camera system.

OnePlus has also given the McLaren edition some software tweaks, such as a black and orange theme (have you noticed a trend yet?) and a special animation when the in-screen fingerprint scanner is used to unlock the phone.

Aside from the slight increase in RAM, the main difference between the McLaren 6T and the run of the mill model is the new charging system. OnePlus says the new Warp Charge 30 charger can refuel the McLaren 6T’s 3700mAh battery up to 50 percent faster than the Fast Charge (formerly Dash Charge) system on other OnePlus phones. It sounds a lot like a rebranded version of the Super VOOC system that debuted on the Oppo Find X Lamborghini in October, which was able to charge that phone to full in just 35 minutes, though OnePlus maintains that Warp Charge and Super VOOC are different technologies.

Fast Charge is already one of the fastest wired charging systems available on any smartphone, so making it even faster is impressive. The company says only the McLaren version of the 6T will achieve the fastest charging speeds with the included charger; other OnePlus devices will default to standard Fast Charge speeds when plugged into it.

Still, the standard 6T already charges very quickly and with 6GB or 8GB of RAM, it doesn’t have any shortage of memory to play around with. That means that the $70 difference between the McLaren edition and the normal 256GB 6T largely goes towards the unique branding and accessories that come with the McLaren version. Is that enough to justify the cost? For some hardcore McLaren fans, possibly.